Mint has become the longest standing African member of the Microsoft Partner Advisory Council (PAC) for Collaboration and Portals through its reappointment to the council.
Microsoft started the PAC programme in 1996 and it has grown to a total of approximately 20 PACs, covering the entire spectrum of Microsoft products and major events.
The concept of the programme is for the Microsoft product groups to interact with selected partners who, through working with the products on customer implementations, have substantial product implementation and development experience.
The partners provide feedback regarding product usage, efficiencies, possible enhancements as well as insight from their customer interaction. There are three meetings per year, held in the US, which include all the PAC members.
The format of the three-day session is interactive, with members of the Microsoft product team facilitating focused discussion groups. Product development and enhancements are discussed in more detail as the PAC members have an understanding of how customers will use the product and therefore which new developments will be of benefit to the customers. In addition to the three meetings, there is collaboration between the PAC members through a PAC portal, enabling the sharing of new ideas remotely.
"We are proud to be part of this programme as it acknowledges our competence in the area of collaboration and portals. Keeping up to date with the latest technology is a key focus for us and we find that this is enhanced through our PAC membership," said Grant Hodgkinson, Sales and Marketing director at Mint.
Hodgkinson continued: "We value the strength of our relationship with Microsoft and the PAC programme shows commitment from both companies. We travel to the PAC at our own expense and we invest time in this programme. In return, we receive valuable product information from Microsoft and are able to stay ahead of the technology curve. It has always been important for us to keep our customers informed of the latest trends and developments, as this enables them to make suitable technology decisions that are beneficial to the business."
Mint helps its customers reduce costs in their businesses. We do this by implementing technology that allows customers to store their IP in a structured, searchable repository, streamlines their existing processes in a digital way, allows users to distribute knowledge more effectively and empowers teams of people to work together. This results in more productive employees and better connections with trading partners and other external parties. Mint is a Johannesburg-based Microsoft Certified Partner and a member of Microsoft`s Seattle-based Partner Advisory Council for Collaboration and Portals.
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